Electric Propulsion Engineer III - Propellant Feed System

Propulsion Engineer III

At Blue Origin, we envision millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth. We're working to develop reusable, safe, and low-cost space vehicles and systems within a culture of safety, collaboration, and inclusion. Join our team of problem solvers as we add new chapters to the history of spaceflight!

The role is part of the In-Space Systems business unit, which is focused on addressing two of the most compelling challenges in spaceflight today: space infrastructure and increasing mobility on-orbit.

As a member of the Tera Wave propulsion team, you will play a foundational role in the development of the Hall thruster-based propulsion systems that maneuver the Tera Wave constellation satellites as well as the propulsion team itself. Tera Wave is a satellite communications network designed to deliver symmetrical data speeds of up to 6 Tbps anywhere on Earth. This network will service tens of thousands of enterprise, data center, and government users who require reliable connectivity for critical operations.

As a Propulsion Engineer III, you will support the development of the propulsion system's fluid management system from concept to production. You will own the technical design, product requirements, concept of operations, and maturation plans for the fluid system from the high-pressure propellant tank to the low pressure inlets of the Hall thruster. You will provide technical guidance and requirements for propulsion team members to ensure design, test, and build efforts are aligned with development of a high-quality Hall thruster-based propulsion system that can be produced at high rates and low costs.

Responsibilities include but are not limited to:

• Executes and supports development of the overall plan for the development of a low-cost and highly produceable Hall thruster propulsion system fluid storage and feed system.
• Plans and leads initiatives in support of the fluid system technology definition and development.
• Responsible for the overall design architecture of a fluid system, fill plan, and interfaces.
• Provides product definition and requirements for mechanical design, test, and manufacturing propulsion team members.
• Develops fluid system verification and validation test and analysis plans.
• Carries out design trade studies to inform on the development of the fluid system and its technology.
• Collaborates with other subsystem team members, in particular thruster and power electronics engineers, for the development of other propulsion system components
• Collaborates with SW and vehicle teams to ensure consistency in concept of operations for the propulsion system in ground test and in flight.
• Collaborates with mechanical, manufacturing, and test teams and supports fluid system design/test/manufacturing reviews with technical insight on operation and design considerations.
• Leads technical definition and requirements of fluid system high pressure test and production operations including propellant filling operations and proof testing.
• Leads continuous improvements and optimization efforts of the propulsion system throughout development and production.
• Conduct and draw conclusions from development testing in support of the propulsion system's iterative design, build, and test loop.
• Technical contributions to the growth of the team through assisting in hiring, identifying team skill gaps, and mentoring junior team members.
• Design, procure, assemble, and operate propulsion development test facilities for system and subsystem-level tests.
• Lead root cause investigations and resolve non-conformances related to the fluid system production and/or performance.

Qualifications:

• Minimum of a master's degree in engineering or equivalent technical field.
• 5+ years of related experience (including graduate work) in the design, development, and flight of electric propulsion systems, and at least 3 years specifically related to electric propulsion fluid systems.
• Functional knowledge of common fluid system test equipment (power supplies, data acquisition systems, pump systems, leak detection equipment, blast shields etc.) and test SW used to control, automate, and monitor their use…